Argentina announces agreement to buy 20 million doses of Pfizer’s Covid vaccine

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Argentina announced Tuesday (27) that it had signed an agreement with Pfizer to purchase 20 million doses of the U.S. pharmaceutical company’s Covid-19 vaccine.

The agreement was confirmed at a press conference held by Health Minister Carla Vizzotti after a negotiation marked by several controversies. According to the Argentine government, the doses will be delivered to the country in 2021.

The contract with Pfizer was signed after Argentina complained about delays in deliveries of the second batch of the Russian Sputnik V vaccine. The Kremlin acknowledged the problem and said it would resolve the issue but stressed that its priority would be domestic demand.

More than 50% of Argentina’s population has received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine. However, only 13% have received the second, partly because of delays in the shipment of Sputnik V.

Yesterday, Argentina’s Health Ministry reported 12,555 more new cases of covid-19 and 384 deaths. In total, the country has had 4.85 million infected and 104,100 deaths since the pandemic began.